Textiles for clothing with a reduced ability to absorb water after contact with it are desired. Yarns for fabrics may be comprised of multi-filaments or staple fibers. Such yarns in the form of fiber/filament bundles comprise voids between the fibers/filaments. In case the yarn comes into contact with a liquid like water, most of the liquid wicks into the voids of the yarn. This wicking process results in a textile that will be wet, heavy and it takes long to dry.
One possibility to overcome this drawback is providing the fabrics with hydrophobic finishes usually based on fluorocarbons. But these fabrics lose their water repellency after just a few washes.
Another possibility of how to treat a textile to make it water repellent is disclosed in EP 2034088 A1 in the name of W.L.Gore & Associates GmbH. EP 2034088 A1 describes a fabric comprised of yarns which are made up of multiple fibers and voids between the fibers. The fabric has a very open textile construction with interstices between the yarns which have an average width of greater than 100 μm. The voids are filled up with a polymer material wherein the interstices remain open. The filling of the voids between the fibers prevents the absorption of water into said voids and therefore leads to reduced water absorption of the fabric. Textiles with such an open construction have a very limited use in the industry, the yarns itself may protected against outside water but the open and wide interstices still allow water to pass through into the garment. Furthermore, it is difficult to add an additional function to the textile by another treatment because the yarns are filled internally with said polymer material already.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,418,051 A assigned to Nextec Applications, Inc., relates to a flexible porous web which contains an internal coating of a silicone polymer composition. The web can comprise fibers in the form of monofilaments, yarns, staples or the like. The web may be a fabric which is woven or non-woven with fibers that can be of any desired composition. The web contains a curable silicone polymer impregnant that is present as a film, or coating, or a layer within a web that envelopes at least a portion of the fibers of the web. The interstices in the region of the internal coating are mostly filled or plugged by impregnant. The outer surfaces of the web are substantially free of impregnant. Silicone polymer which substantially completely encapsulates a web's fibers and forms an internal layer means, that the silicone polymer is located mostly upon surface portions of the fibers in the interior of the web. Based on the internal coating layer, the fibers of the outer surfaces of the web are uncoated and therefore able to wick water into the web. In order to avoid this, a fluorochemical is used to impregnate the web before the silicone polymer is applied. It is known that such impregnated webs lose their water repellency after just a few washes. Furthermore, such webs with an internal coating layer are not air-permeable because of the internal layer or the film by the silicone polymer.
Usually protective clothing for industrial workers and law enforcement are made of polycotton dense textiles. Polycotton textiles are not expensive but have very high water absorption and a re-dry time of several hours.
Firefighters, industrial workers, law enforcement and the like need garments that protect them not only from weather conditions but also from hazardous liquids, heat and flame. In particular, protection from flame requires materials that both self-extinguish and prevent burn caused by heat transfer through a garment. In addition, liquid and flame protection clothing should have a level of breathability sufficient to reduce heat stress burden to extend their ability to perform the function or to prevent heat casualty. Flame protective materials comprising non-combustible, non-melting fabric made of, for example, aramides, polybenzimidazole (PBI), poly p-phenylene-2,6-benzobisoxazole (PBO), modacrylic blends and combinations thereof. These fibers may be inherently flame resistant but may have several limitations. Specifically, these fibers may be very expensive, difficult to dye and print, and may not have adequate abrasion resistance. Additionally, these fibers pick up more water and offer unsatisfactory comfort as compared to nylon or polyester based fabrics. Furthermore, additional hydrophobic, oleophobic or the like treatments are also difficult, based on the unique chemical structure of said flame protective material.
The present invention overcomes the deficiencies described above.
One object of the present invention is to provide for an improved textile composite having a low water absorption value, a fast re-dry time and is still air permeable.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a textile composite with a low water absorption value, high air permeability and which is flame resistant.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a textile composite that comprises an outer meltable, flammable textile which is flame resistant, air permeable and water resistant while being having a low water absorption value and a fast re-dry time.
Furthermore, for optimum user performance in environments with occasional flash fire exposure, a lightweight, water vapor permeable and water resistant garment with enhanced burn protection is desired.